Tests find toxins at Flambeau mine

This photo shows the Flambeau Mine site in 2006, nine years after it closed. Much of the site has been reclaimed, with trails, forests and wetlands, but some tests still show elevated levels of copper and zinc in a stream on the property. Credit: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

Fourteen years after mining operations ended, water samples on the site of the Flambeau mine near Ladysmith show high levels of toxic pollutants.

In the most recent tests, state records show that copper and zinc levels have exceeded state toxicity standards for surface waters, potentially threatening fish and other aquatic life.

The findings come as mining regulation looms as a legislative issue this fall, and the Flambeau mine has been cited as a model of mineral extraction without environmental harm. Lawmakers are poised to rewrite mining laws and ease restrictions after Gogebic Taconite, based in Hurley, put plans on hold this year for a $1.5 billion iron ore mine until regulations are streamlined.

Officials with the state Department of Natural Resources and the Flambeau Mining Co., a subsidiary of Kennecott Mineral Co., say pollution problems haven't been ignored - the company has been removing contaminated soil from the property since 2003.

Nevertheless, DNR testing revealed that 41% of 94 samples taken in 2010 and 2011 had more copper and zinc than standards set by the state to protect aquatic life. The samples were taken from a small stream, a pond and ditches.

The latest results are comparable with previous tests by the mine's consultants, according to the DNR.

Also, the DNR is deciding whether to officially classify the waters as impaired. That would begin a process of finding ways to turn around the health of the stream. DNR officials say in some cases, property owners are required to pay for or help with the improvements.

The environmental group has pushed for the stream, known as Stream C, to be listed as an impaired water body.

The stream originates in nearby wetlands. It is wet only part of the year and passes through part of the mine property before joining the Flambeau River. Although it runs only intermittently, Stream C is not insignificant.

One DNR official likened the stream and other waters on the site to "capillaries in our blood system."

"They are the small channels that move nutrients," said Tom Aartila, a DNR water resources sources supervisor. "They're breeding and habitat areas and they are a source of nutrients."

Flambeau was an open-pit mine that operated from 1993 to 1997. It produced 181,000 tons of copper, 3.3 million ounces of silver and 334,000 ounces of gold, according to the company.

The minerals generated $341 million in revenue and a net income of $126 million during its lifetime, Kennecott reported.

As debate over mining regulations heats up, the newly reorganized Wisconsin Mining Association has held up the Flambeau mine as a success, saying it met standards of opening and closing under state law.

In a push to develop its Eagle mining project in the Upper Peninsula, Kennecott also touts Flambeau on its website for "protecting the environment from adverse impact."

The mine is now under development and will produce nickel and copper for Kennecott, a unit of British-based Rio Tinto.

Some areas restored

At the Flambeau mine, 149 acres have been restored after the DNR approved a reclamation plan for much of the site. The reclaimed area includes four miles of walking trails, an equestrian trail, forests, wetlands and native grasses.

But restoring the remaining 32 acres - where rock from the mine was crushed, stockpiled and loaded on rail cars - has been a work in progress.

The Wisconsin Resources Protection Council has monitored mining and reclamation operations and pushed the DNR and mining company to address the high copper readings in the water.

In January, the group and others filed a lawsuit in federal court, arguing that Flambeau has been unlawfully discharging toxic pollutants dating back to 1998, according to court records.

"I don't think that we can say conclusively that mining can be done safely," said attorney James N. Saul, who represents the environmental groups.

"The situation certainly makes it clear the Flambeau Mining Company is not the poster child that people hold it out to be."

Attorneys for Flambeau said in court documents that the mine isn't violating the Clean Water Act - and the DNR agrees with that.

Rather, the company and the DNR say that Flambeau is governed by its mining permit, which they say the company has not violated. And as part of the permit, the company is required to monitor potential pollutants from storm water and take steps - known as best management practices - to remove them.

"That is a legal argument we vigorously dispute," said Saul, noting that waters on the site are violating state water quality standards.

"We have argued that the DNR has been a little derelict in their duties, and our clients, over the years, have tried to spur the appropriate regulatory response."

"You could point fingers," said Philip Fauble, mining program coordinator for the DNR.

"But we weren't aware of these elevated copper levels that were out there. Once they were detected, Flambeau took proactive steps to control this."

Jana Murphy, environmental and reclamation manager for Flambeau, said the company had been addressing the problems with copper and other pollutants from the start.

"There's a system in place," Murphy said. "The company is committed to protecting the environment - and that's what we have done."

Reclamation plan

According to company documents, Flambeau spent about $20 million on reclaiming the property.

Starting in 1997, crews began filling in the pit with waste rock and soil. In 2007, the DNR approved the reclamation plan for most of the property.

By accident, Fauble said, high copper levels were discovered in 2003 on a rail spur during reconstruction of Highway 27. Two feet of soil - about 7,400 tons - were removed.

In 2006, elevated copper levels were found again. Four inches of soil on 2.2 acres were carted off.

Then in 2008, high copper levels were detected in a ditch on the property. More than 300 tons of soil were trucked to a landfill

Next spring, Flambeau will remove a nearly 1-acre pond area - known as a biofilter - that contains water on the southeastern edge of the property.

Testing by the DNR and the company has showed high levels of copper and zinc have settled in the biofilter.

During periods of heavy precipitation, it overflows and spills into Stream C and flows to the nearby Flambeau.

The DNR took water samples on Oct. 26, 2010, and April 27 and June 19 after rain caused overflows.

Documents show that in areas of the stream, the results for copper alone produced reading that were two to four times higher than the state's standard for acute toxicity. Other areas were higher.

According to DNR testing, however, there were no signs of excessive readings in the Flambeau River.

One complicating factor in the dispute is that water quality of Stream C was never tested before mining began, so no baseline exists.

"The fact of the matter is that it flows through an ore body," the DNR's Fauble said. "It might just have naturally higher levels of copper in it."

About Lee Bergquist

Lee Bergquist covers environmental issues and is author of "Second Wind: The Rise of the Ageless Athlete."